RESEARCH - Effect of Enbrel on fatigue in patients with recent or established RA

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Arthritis Rheum. 2006 Apr 15;55(2):287-93.

Effect of etanercept on fatigue in patients with recent or established

rheumatoid arthritis.

Moreland LW, Genovese MC, Sato R, Singh A.

University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the long-term impact of etanercept on fatigue in

patients with recent-onset (mean duration 11 months) or established (mean

duration 12 years) rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: Patients

participating in either of 2 multicenter, randomized, double-blind clinical

trials were included. In one trial, patients with recent-onset RA received

either etanercept 25 mg twice weekly or methotrexate in a double-blind

fashion for 12 months, then open label for 12 months. All patients then

received open-label etanercept. In the second trial, patients with

established RA received etanercept 25 mg or placebo twice weekly for 6

months in a double-blinded fashion, then open-label etanercept. Up to 46

months of followup data were included. Fatigue was measured regularly using

the Health Assessment Questionnaire vitality domain. RESULTS: Patients with

recent-onset RA who received etanercept had a significantly faster

improvement in fatigue than those receiving methotrexate in the first 2

months. Subsequently, patients receiving etanercept and methotrexate had

23-29% and 17-24% reductions in fatigue scores, respectively. In the group

with established RA, patients who received etanercept had significantly

greater reductions in fatigue than those receiving placebo during the

blinded period. Patients initially receiving etanercept sustained a mean

fatigue reduction of 25-36% for the entire followup. Patients achieving

clinically meaningful improvement in fatigue were more likely to meet the

American College of Rheumatology improvement criteria.

CONCLUSION: Etanercept therapy reduces fatigue in patients with recent-onset

or established RA. Improvement in fatigue was sustained for up to 46 months,

and correlated with other RA-relevant outcomes.

PMID: 16583424

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve & db=PubMed & list_uids=1\

6583424

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